Lean On Me
by Netsubo
Summary: When Naruto returns with Sasuke, he tries to find a way to piece their lives back together. However, he’ll find out that even if goals are accomplished, people are left broken.


**When Naruto returns with Sasuke, he tries to find a way to piece their lives back together. However, he'll find out that even if goals are accomplished, people are left broken.**

Disclaimer: Naruto © Kishimoto

**AN:** This is my first time publishing a fanfiction so let's see how it goes. Ideas are still rough and so there could be a lot of changing going on. Reviews are appreciated as they let me know what you think and if feedback is positive I'm more likely to write faster. However updates may be slow and irregular as I've got exams in the next few months, but I'll try my best. Constructive criticism and ideas will be taken on board as well. Also, just to warn you, this is un-beta'd, so there are likely to be some mistakes.

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Lean on Me

A Naruto FanFic

By Netsubo

Prologue

Naruto was sprawled across his bed as the moonlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains. His skin looked pale and his eyes were consumed by dark circles. The sheets were tangled around his waist and his feet hung from the side of the bed. A layer of sweat adorned his skin and he was breathing heavily as his fingers reached for invisible objects in front of him. His body twisted and turned trying to fight off whatever it was that was plaguing him, even in his dreams.

Naruto grunted suddenly, and jolted upright. His eyes were alert as he panted for air. Slowly, as he took in his surroundings, his breathing slowed and he closed his eyes with a moan. He began to unwrap himself from his sheets and get to his feet. He dragged himself into the kitchen, running a hand through his hair. He sighed gently as he switched on the kettle and sat roughly on a nearby chair.

He looked around and realised that he no longer felt any comfort from being in his childhood home. Anxiety sat deep in his bones and he was itching to be doing something, anything so that he could try to at least convince himself that he was making a difference. The eerie quietness, which used to be a comfort for him, only made him lonely. It all made him agitated, and even before the kettle had finished boiling, he had thrown on a shirt and was out of the door.

The cool night air was harsh against his skin as he wondered through the deserted streets of Konoha. His feet led the way to a familiar place and by the time Naruto realised where he was he'd woken up enough to feel the anger that sleep had driven off. The three lone posts which stood in the middle of the training field brought back too many memories of his younger years. They were mocking him with their unchanged state, laughing at his numerous failures to get things back to how they had been in the beginning.

Rage consumed him as he begun to attack the posts, strike after strike. No matter how many times he succeeded, something would always ruin it. Why was life so complicated? The wood splintered beneath his fists and his nails dug deep into his palms. Why was he so incapable of achieving what he promised, of what he so desperately craved?

Eventually his anger died down and he gripped the post tight, leaning his weight against it and lowering his head. His eyes were glossed over and he felt utterly pathetic as the tears ran down his cheek silently. Sliding down the post, he collapsed in a heap on the grass and covered his face with his hands.

He hadn't worked so hard to have his best friend end up in a cell in the deepest parts of the village. Never in his life had he felt like such a failure, no matter how much Sakura and the others tried to convince him otherwise. They couldn't understand why he was being so critical of himself.

But they hadn't been there to witness Sasuke's utterly broken form as he resisted Naruto. They hadn't been there to see just how close he had been to burning out. They hadn't been there to see how Sasuke had trusted Naruto with the last of his flame, believing Naruto's words enough to give him one last reason to live on.

Naruto looked up to the sky, eyes shining bright under the stars.

"Just believe in me a little while longer. I'll get you out; I swear it to you, teme."

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**AN:** Okay so, I know it's quite a depressing start but I'm not planning on having it stay this way. It should lighten up little by little as the story progresses. It will begin to be more about Naruto's and Sasuke's friendship soon, I promise!

The story will follow the manga loosely, meaning most events are presumed to have taken place already, prior to this fanfic. However, some of the more recent stuff in the manga may be disregarded or changed. It should be explained as the story progresses, but if anything's unclear, tell me and I'll try to explain/ correct it. The characters are around 19 in the story.

Thanks for your time!

Netsubo


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